Windy, Rainy, Gloomy

Morning broke; or rather it didn't. Yesterday's sun and majestic sunset is long gone. The sky is heavy overcast and a light rain is spitting into the wind. We fled our Room 19 accommodation where the radiator puts out heat as if it were the dead of an Irish winter for the lovely lobby which is not only cooler but also the only place where WiFi is available. For B4, WiFi is as high on her priority list as is "clean" and "en suite." The Bellbridge House Hotel is lovely except for the bedrooms which are not. The staff is more than welcoming and anxious to make our stay perfect which it is as long as we avoid 19.

In the morning, B4 is quickly into work mode, concerned as she always is about business, metrics, planning and more, leaving me time to just soak in the ambiance. I love the Irish accent. Three is "tree" and all words that end in the letter "T" are crisply finished rather than allowed to drift off into nothing as with our American accent. That becomes "ThaT" with a hard "T" at the end making the speaker sound particularly eloquent even when they are not. Antiques or furnishings that pass for that are commonplace in the public spaces of the hotel and, perhaps, with the mattresses.

We count our blessings that our self-styled itinerary happened to put The Burren and The Cliffs of Moher on the calendar for yesterday's wonderful sun. This would not be a good day to visit either of those unique venues. I will opt for the "Motorways" today rather than the rural lanes of yesterday which are winding and unbelievably narrow. But first, we are going to make our way a half-hour to Kilkee, the village of my ancestors now become a resort town. Protected from the Atlantic Ocean waves by the Duggerna Reef, the horseshoe bay here is flanked by a beautiful coast walk that leads to Loop Head Peninsula. As we arrive, the sun comes out. I can only imagine what torment there must have been to motivate Michael Francis Russell, born 1872, to leave this place as a teenager and head to America.

Along the way we pass a new development.

Then we are off on the wide divided motorway across this island nation back to Dublin. Again, the Waze App proves its worth guiding us efficiently and clearly to The Westin where we are checked into the Oscar Wilde Suite, again on British Airways points. Inefficient and quirky it is fun and most certainly is an upgrade from Room 19.

We stroll Grafton shopping street where traffic is not a problem. B4 finds a wonderful dress and we stop for dinner at the ornate and fun Bank Restaurant where the pianist is worthy of a generous tip as he riffs from Dire Straits to The Beatles to Billy to Elton and back again.

Tomorrow we are off to Canada and then the United States. Brief but wonderful, I bid Ireland goodbye in a way far different than did my grandfather.